N.H. Hospitals Await Governor’s Signature On Compromise Bill For Underpayments That Stretched Out For Years
“This will not cover all of the uncompensated care costs that hospitals incur in taking care of those patients, but it will certainly help to offset the loss they will incur providing those important services,” said Steve Ahnen, president of the New Hampshire Hospital Association.
Concord (N.H.) Monitor:
New Hampshire Hospitals, State On Cusp Of A Reset Over Payment Dispute
New Hampshire’s hospitals and top state officials have brokered a seven-year deal over uncompensated care payments, ending for now a yearslong dispute from hospitals who said they were underpaid. The agreement, negotiated by Senate President Chuck Morse, R-Salem, and others, halts a period of uncertainty for the state after a key federal court ruling in March. (DeWitt, 5/28)
And in other hospital news —
Boston Globe:
Report Faults Children’s Hospital For Medication Errors
Three patients at Boston Children’s Hospital suffered from medication errors in 2017, including one who waited hours for an antibiotic and later died, according to a state and federal inspection report. The mistakes, which occurred between January and November and involved two drugs, prompted regulators to threaten the hospital with potential termination from the federal Medicare program. (Kowalczyk, 5/27)
Seattle Times:
Lakewood Moves To Stop Release Of Some Western State Hospital Psychiatric Patients Within Its Borders
The city home to Washington’s main psychiatric hospital is fighting to stop patients from being discharged to residential treatment centers within its borders. Lakewood approved a moratorium last week on city business licenses for new adult family homes and authorized a lawsuit against the state to end what it calls the unsafe release of people with histories of violence or sexual offenses into its city. (Orenstein, 5/28)
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
Froedtert Health To Test A New Model: A "Neighborhood" Hospital.
Froedtert Health plans to test a new model of providing care by building what it calls a “neighborhood” hospital in Mequon that would have eight overnight beds and an emergency department. The hospital, which would not provide surgical services, would be built across the street from a clinic at 11430 N. Port Washington Road opened last year by the Froedtert & Medical College of Wisconsin Health network. (Boulton, 5/25)
